gargantua wrote:Well, then,I'm sure airports everywhere will appreciate that "snotty bit of life advice" and hop right to it!

Really? You think suggesting that a transportation industry should provide basic information to its customers is akin to the presumption that everyone does, and should, carry a cell phone and if they don't, fuck'em?

I mean, if that's really your opinion, that's fine. I just doubt it is.

Glad to know I wasn't imagining this. The time is simply the most important piece of information for the air traveler. Your gate # is important but once you know it, it doesn't change (usually). Big red two-sided digital clocks hanging from the ceiling every 200 feet, all wired together and monitored by a retired elementary school principle. THAT is what every airport needs.

I don't know if it's my imagination or if there's just fewer clocks everywhere. I like to be everywhere a little early and tend to daydream if I don't look at my wristwatch.

My best O'Hare Story: Years ago (flying to a funeral, in New Jersey) my cab delivered me early. The ticket counter said my flight had been canceled, but if I ran, the last one was about to leave. I got to the gate just in time.

I can also say, there's not much worse than seeing your flight take off without you.

To revisit......I forgot a watch, I don't take a phone on vacation, the A/D screens might have the time but it's miniscule and no help when you're running for your gate, and the simple fact is it's just fucking stupid not to have abundant clocks in airports.

[quote="holyghost" They just want to cut costs, so they overbook flights. Then, they assume a certain # of people will miss their flights. If you don't know what time it is, it's easy to miss your departure. [/quote]

Actually this is what other people have told me, and in our typically screwed up society it sounds about right.

Well if they're gonna operate like a casino then I want free drinks for playing.

narcoleptish wrote:To revisit......I forgot a watch, I don't take a phone on vacation, the A/D screens might have the time but it's miniscule and no help when you're running for your gate, and the simple fact is it's just fucking stupid not to have abundant clocks in airports.

If you were already running, did it really matter what exact time it was? It seems that you've conceded that they DO provide clocks, just not big enough....

jman111 wrote:If you were already running, did it really matter what exact time it was? It seems that you've conceded that they DO provide clocks, just not big enough....

The antagonism directed at those of us who desire more and better clocks at airports really is baffling to me.

None of us are suggesting that being on time for flights isn't the responsibility of the passengers. But is it really so unreasonable to suggest that (just like bus and train stations) airports ought to do a better job of helping us out? Many of the responses here make it sound like we're demanding free services or special treatment or something. We just wanna be able to find out what frickin' time it is without having to waste extra time hunting for it.

holyghost wrote:It's all really a massive conspiracy on the part of the airlines.

They just want to cut costs, so they overbook flights. Then, they assume a certain # of people will miss their flights.

Airlines do overbook out of anticipation of a certain number of no-shows.

But if you're really suggesting that the airports are in on this by hiding the current time from passengers, well, that doesn't make a lot of sense, because artificially increasing the number of missed flights would simply cancel out the intent behind the overbooking.

fisticuffs wrote:Aren't there quite a few of these signs around airports?

From that sign wouldn't you be able to make at least an educated guess as to what time it was? I'd say this picture was taken sometime before 3:05PM.

It could be. Or it could be after 3:05 PM, on a day where several flights are delayed. The times that are visible in the photo are the times the flights were originally scheduled to depart, and it may not reflect their actual departure times, or the current time.

Wags is right. A well-designed public space doesn't leave you hunting for information you need. The same goes for the signage in the airport: if your eye falls on the information you need, just about when and where you need it, it's doing its job.

I'm a little baffled too, I didn't see an argument coming from this. Cell phone batteries can die and watches can be set to the wrong time zone and novice travelers might not think to look on the A/D screens for microscopic clocks......a big visible clock on a wall seems like such a no-brainer that the absence of them begs for an explanation. It's no different in my mind than putting gate numbers on 2-inch square sign above the jetway doors.